Like a River Over Stone
by iiKiwiliciousii
Summary: Mikey feels a little down after the events in "The Gauntlet", so he goes to good old Master Splinter for advice. (2012 one-shot)


**Hello! *everyone groans* Ok... Anyway, I have tons of spare time cause I'm a lonely crab, and all I got is a brain of ideas and a laptop. So I was re watching the episode "Turtle Temper", (Season 1 Episode 3) and I reached the part where Master Splinter was telling him how he should try to let the insults pass through him, like a river over stone. So that gave me big inspiration, especially after watching "The Gauntlet". *Laughs evilly* BTW the whole thing is set during and after "The Gauntlet"**

 **Ok anyway, ENJOY AND REVIEW! Love hearing what you guys think.**

 **I DON'T OWN TMNT 2012**

 **Like a River Over Stone**

 **SMACK**

As Leo punched the last Kraang, still in it's robot body, the rest of the turtles made their way into the room, filled with screens and info, brightly lit with a blueish haze.

"Donnie, hack into the system and see if you can find out about the Kraangs' plot." Leo ordered. "Raph, you're with me. Mikey, stay with Donnie."

Almost instantly, Donnie scowled, turning to object.

"Why do I always get stuck with Mikey?" Donnie complained.

"Hey."

Mikey frowned slightly, feeling a little offended. He wasn't sure _stuck_ was the right word. He wasn't the best partner, but he wasn't _**that**_ bad, was he?

"I don't want him." Leo said shaking his head. "And I'm in charge!"

"Hey!"

It didn't seem as though anyone was listening to him, and he was starting to feel kinda hurt, the way his brothers just passed him around, as if no one wanted him.

"Well then make Raph take Mikey." Donnie suggested motioning to the red clad brother. Raph crossed his arms and shook his head, with Mikey looking hopefully.

"Over my dead body."

"You know, I'm starting to think no one wants to be with me." Mikey muttered. No one said anything. No one corrected him, no one denied it. It was quiet.

"Fine, I'll just go off on my own."

And with that, Mikey disappeared. (via smoke bomb, of course)

A few clunk sounds came from the door behind them, before Mikey emerged, grinning sheepishly.

"That's a closet..."

Raph and Leo smirked walking away.

"Have fun, you two."

oOoOoOo

After getting home, and having Donnie tend to their injuries, each brother eventually made their way to their rooms, with Mikey being the first to disappear. He had a pretty tiring night... physically and emotionally. His brothers words stung more than that three ton sign that he was stuck under. Mikey tried to sleep. He really did. But his chest was sore, and that was kind of annoying. Not to mention, no matter how much he tried not to think about it, he kept remembering what his brothers said.

" _I don't want him."_

" _Why do I always get stuck with Mikey?"_

" _Over my dead body!"_

His brothers didn't really mean that. At least he hoped so. He told himself that it was just the stress of the situation they were in, but that still didn't take away the pain he felt. He didn't even know why he was still thinking about it. No one else seemed to remember. No one mentioned it for the rest of the night.

 _So why can't I stop thinking about it?_

His thoughts continued, so he tried to distract him self. Grabbing his skateboard, and a few new stickers he found, Mikey began to decorate the bottom of his board, covering old ones in the process. He was sure to leave his favourite stickers untouched and open.

When he placed the last of his stickers on the board, he grabbed a few action figures, and began to play with them. Mikey looked at the two figures he picked. Action-Kick Unicorn Man and the Chris Bradford action figure. He shuddered seeing the Chris Bradford figure, remembering the horrific mutants that emerged during their fight with Shredder. He knew they would be facing Brad-Dog and the Xever-Fish soon enough

But as horrifying as they were, they still saved their lives, in a way.

Deciding he didn't want to play with the action figures anymore, Mikey put them back in his shelf, and went to get a late night snack, one of his favourite snack times.

Using his ninja stealth skills to get to the kitchen and quietly open the fridge door, he pulled out day-old pizza. Which was fine by him. Munching on the pizza, Mikey glanced at the clock, which read;

 **4:58am**

Realizing he wasn't going to get any sleep that night, Mikey wandered aimlessly, eventually finding himself in the dojo, in front of the tree. He remembered when Master Splinter planted that tree. It was a long time ago, not to long after their mutation. He even remembered that he helped his father plant the tree. Master Splinter let him dig the hole, (with his bare hands) and cover the seed up. (again, with his bare hands) Touching dirt was fun back then, and even now in his opinion.

"Is everything alright, Michelangelo?"

Startled at the sudden voice, Mikey jumped up and instinctively got into a defensive position. A chuckle was heard, and Mikey realized that it was just Master Splinter. Sighing, and also smiling a little, Mikey relaxed.

"What are you doing up Master Splinter?"

"It is time for my morning meditation, as I do every morning." Master Splinter answered simply, positioning himself on his mat. "The question is, what are _you_ doing up?"

Mikey looked down, remembering why he couldn't sleep. He almost forgot.

"I couldn't sleep."

"I sense something is troubling you my son. Come." Master Splinter said, motioning to the spot beside him. Mikey made his way over beside Master Splinter before making himself comfortable on the floor.

"Are you still feeling down about your fight with the Shredder yesterday?" Master Splinter asked.

"Not really... I do feel lucky that we survived, and I don't see a reason big enough to be depressed about it."

Master Splinter nodded, agreeing with what his son had said. He felt as though he shouldn't say anything for a few minutes, for he sensed that his son wanted a bit of silence.

The two sat there, in the dim room, lit only by the early sky above. It was only 5, so it was still pretty dark, but the sky was light enough to provide a dim light. Mikey knew he should talk to his father about what happened, but he still felt like it was something he should just forget about. But that just wouldn't happen. So the silence continued.

In all honesty, Mikey was grateful his father didn't ask more questions. He enjoyed the silence right now. The only problem with the silence was that all the was left for him now was to think, and there was still only one thing on his mind. Feeling stupid for still caring about it, Mikey's eyes watered a little. Biting his lip, he hung his head low.

" _And that's why no body want to be with you!"_

Trying to avoid what happened yesterday, Mikey's mind took him to other experiences, starting with more of yesterday.

" _Face it, Mikey, Chris Bradford is the last person on Earth that would be friends with you. Well, tied for last, with everyone else on Earth!"_

" _Playing a little game I like to call, mutation roulette. Now you could turn up handsome like me, or you might end up disgusting and deformed, like Mikey here."_

" _Of course it did. Would you wanna look like Mikey here?"_

Now that Mikey thought about it, it was mostly Raph... but that didn't stop the others from getting their fair share.

" _We all have brains, Mikey."_

" _Not all of us."_

Ha. He turned out to be right about the Kraang, didn't he? And did his brothers apologize? No, they yelled at him.

" _You're really gonna plug an advanced piece of military technology directly into Mikey's head? What if it melts his brain?"_

" _It won't. And even if it did, who'd know the difference?_

Ouch. Even Donnie had some hurtful things to say. Mikey began to think again of what happened this evening, when they were trying to defuse the bomb. Honestly, Leo didn't say much about Mikey. Which is probably why it hurt so much when he said he didn't want him.

" _Don't you think you've pushed enough **buttons** tonight?!"_

" _Guys, guys, **Mikey** was right about something!"_

That last one stung. Each time he was right about something his brothers were always super shocked. He wasn't that stupid. Master Splinter told him that he was certainly very intelligent. Sometimes. And so what if he pushed buttons, or always forgot stuff? He was still a good fighter. Maybe?

"Michelangelo."

Looking up, Mikey wondered how long he had been thinking. He wasn't sure if his face gave away his distress or not, or how long his sensei watched him think.

"Is there something you care to talk about?"

Care to talk about? Not really. But he knew he should. He sighed, before opening up.

"I don't know... The guys said some hurtful things earlier, and I keep remembering it; along with all the other times they insult me."

Master Splinter nodded knowingly, stroking his long beard. He was aware of all the teasing his older sons did, but he hadn't been aware of how his youngest actually felt about it. He felt guilty for not paying attention, but in his defence, Mikey was very good at hiding his hurt, or showing that he cared.

"I see. Then why don't you tell them this?" He suggested.

"I'm trying to ignore it." Mikey shrugged. When he earned a confused and questioning look, he explained.

"You always tell us, especially Raph, to ignore insults, and not to let it anger us. Like a river over stone."

Master Splinter thought for a minute. He did say that, didn't he? He didn't know exactly what to say to this situation. Stroking his beard again, the old rat sighed. He didn't mean for it to be used out of context.

"My son, even a stone wears down over time." Splinter finally said. Mikey looked confused. Usually he would say, ' _You know it's good advice when you're still confused after'_ , but he was too confused to think of that. So Master Splinter continued.

"The river flows steadily over the stone, over time wearing it down, making it smooth, almost the way the river wants it to be, until it is a perfect smooth stone. But in order for it to happen, the rest of the stone had to be scraped off, whether the rock wanted it or not. If the rock were alive, of course. The insults are the river, and you are the stone. The insults wash over you, and you pay no attention to them for a while, but over time, without even realizing it, you are shaping, and becoming someone new."

Mikey looked down, taking in what his sensei told him. That really _**was**_ good advice. And the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. He had changed some of his habits, believing it was his choice and that it was better for the team, when really it was what his brothers always told him. Sometimes he felt self-conscious about himself. He never really cared about his appearance, even as a mutant turtle, but the higher the insult pile grew, the more he worried how he looked. He would hide his insecurity with confidence, like how he always called himself the cute one.

"So yes Michelangelo. We should not let insults anger us. That is what the metaphor really means. We can choose not to let insults anger us, but we cannot choose whether they hurt or change us. Let the river flow over you, taking your anger away, but don't let it shape you." Master Splinter finished. "Now go talk to your brothers."

oOoOoOo

"So tell me Mikey; why are we blessed with such silence?"

Mikey looked up from his food, which he wasn't really eating, to meet the eyes of his older brothers. He shrugged, looking down again.

"Just thinking." He mumbled, poking at his food. Thinking about how to bring up the subject on his mind.

"That's new." Raph snorted. Mikey scowled, without his brothers seeing. There it was again. Adding up each day.

 _Just add it on the pile, would ya?_

Donnie, however, wasn't going to give up.

"Mikey for real. What's wrong? Are you feeling ok?"

Leo too was beginning to worry. His little brother was awake before him, making breakfast without a word. He was slow in response, and seemed more zoned out than usual. He could tell something was on his mind.

"Mikey?"

"I;m fine guys! I was just thinking..." Mikey said, not meeting anyone's eyes.

"About what?"

Put on the spot, Mikey looked around frantically, trying to make something up.

"Um, I was, uh... well..." The freckled turtle stuttered. His brothers gave him an "out with it" look, and that's when he gave up.

"Do you guys like me?" He asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

All three brothers were taken aback, not expecting that question. They looked at each other, hoping someone knew what to say. Raph gave Leo a small kick under the table, motioning with his face that he should say something.

"Of course we like you Mikey! Why wouldn't we?" Leo asked, a little hurt and confused.

"Well, yesterday, no one wanted to work with me, and when I pointed that out, no one corrected me! You guys kept passing me around to each other, like I wasn't there, or I was a child someone had to babysit. I guess all the things you guys said are piling up..." Mikey said, staring at his food, poking it around.

All three older brothers now sat in shame. They weren't even thinking yesterday, were they?

"Plus you openly said that you didn't want me."

Leo frowned. Now that he remembered, that was him. How could he? He was in charge! He was the oldest. He should have been mature about it, not claimed that he didn't want Mikey and that he was in charge!

Raph also felt guilty. He should have stood up for his little brother. After both Donnie and Leo rejected him, he should have happily and willingly took his brother. He just ignored Mikey's hurt yet hopeful face. Besides, he did tend to have fun with Mikey. He really needed to stop acting like hanging with his little brother would hurt his "reputation"

Donnie probably felt the worst. In a way, he started that all. Mikey was a great partner. Sure, he touched too many buttons, and was always moving, but that wasn't a reason to treat Mikey that way!

The tension hung in the air, with no one saying a thing. Mikey began to regret that he mentioned anything at all. He should have just brushed it off, and continued to smile, as usual. Finally, Raph broke the silence.

"Mikey, I am so, **so** , sorry."

Mikey was honestly shook. Raph **never** apologized. Like ever. And when he did, it was always quietly, and he still looked angry as he said it. But this apology was for real. Raph looked sincere.

"I am too." Leo added.

"And so am I." Donnie said.

"We're all so sorry, Mikey. Honestly, I think that since you never really responded to most of our teasing, we just kept doing it as if it didn't matter." Leo said. "Not that it was a good reason anyway."

"You kinda became, like an insult punching bag, I guess." Raph concluded.

"I never realized how much we 'punched the bag'" Donnie sighed, using quotations with his fingers around "punched the bag". "We just took our anger out on you. When I was frustrated, or stressed, I took it out on you."

"And I did too, when I was angry, or even if I was bored!" Raph said. He honestly had no idea how he let himself just put his brother down all the time.

"And I just did it for no reason! And even if I wasn't doing anything, I let the others do it! I could have just stopped them, and stopped myself but-"

"I forgive you guys."

Leo was interrupted mid-sentence, when Mikey forgave them. Looking up in shock, Leo was lost for words. It baffled him how his brother could so easily just forgive him for his bullying, and with one glance of his brothers, he could tell that they felt the same way. Mikey laughed a little, wiping his watered eyes.

"Dudes, I totally forgive you. I felt better as soon as I got if off my chest honestly. You didn't have to preach me a whole sermon."

At this comment, all four of them giggle, before Leo pulled Mikey into a hug. Mikey was a little shocked at first, but then he buried himself into his eldest brothers plastron, enjoying the hug. Soon he felt the arms of his other brother, and the four snuggled.

 _Like a river over stone..._ Mikey thought as they separated.

"Hey Raph?"

"Yeah?"

"Have you been practising those sappy apologies in the mirror or something?"

 **!SMACK!**

 **And that's all I got. I hope they weren't too out of character... Anyway, thanks for reading!**

 **-iiKiwiliciousii**


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